Pub. 9 2020 Issue 1

l e a d i n g a d v o c a t e f o r t h e b a n k i n g i n d u s t r y i n k a n s a s 12 First Option Bank in Horton Has a Ribbon Cutting The Horton Chamber of Commerce celebrated the recent merger of the former Pony Express Community Bank, newly named First Option Bank, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Dec. 13, 2019. This celebration included guests from the Horton Chamber of Commerce, bank executives and staff, friends and loyal customers who popped through to offer congratulations to their community bank. “We take pride in our outstanding personal service and a longstanding tradition of community involvement,” said First Option Bank Regional President Steve Handke. “We plan to maintain a strong commitment to our communities and to meeting our customer’s needs with affordable, high-quality products and services in all of the locations we serve.” Bank of the Flint Hills Celebrates Milestone Anniversaries Bank of the Flint Hills recently celebrated three employees who have completed 45+ years at the bank. Karen Lett, Betty Stauffer and Debbie Sanford were recognized in December for their years of service to the bank and its customers. Karen has offices in St. Marys and provides support in a variety of areas of the bank including operations, customer support and compliance. Betty works in the Wamego Main bank and helps customers daily as well as balancing and auditing the bank's internal accounts. Debbie works in the White City bank and has been the branch manager for seven years. She worked in customer service before she was the branch manager. Mary Taylor Celebrates 20 Years at KBA Mary Taylor began her career with the Kansas Bankers Association Jan. 3, 2000, and has recently celebrated her 20th anniversary at the KBA! She was originally hired as an education assistant, and over the years has served as a communications specialist, marketing coordinator, and VP of communications and marketing. She was recently promoted to Senior Vice President of Communications and Marketing as of late December 2019. With her recent promotion, Mary has also joined the Leadership Team at the KBA. While her roles at the KBA touch every one of our departments and are widely varied, three of the most notable ways all our bankers feel her presence is via our weekly eSource newsletter, our bimonthly magazine, The Kansas Banker , and our social media channels. Mary is the person behind these, getting the most recent news out to all our bankers across the state! In her spare time, Mary enjoys boating, bicycling (she’s ridden the Dirty Kanza more than once), going on mission trips to Africa with the Imana Kids program, and her many rescued cats. Congratulations on your milestone, Mary! Denison Names New Board Chairwoman Paula Taylor has been named Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of Denison State Bank, a $360-million community bank in Holton, Kan., following the November death of her father, James Birkbeck, in that same role. Taylor was serving as Vice Chair of the board for the past two years. Birkbeck served as chairman of the bank board for 42 years, along with being bank president and majority owner. Taylor has been on the bank board since 1998. She also serves as secretary/treasurer of the bank’s holding company, Denison Bancshares Inc. She has been employed at the bank in various capacities since 1993. First National Bank of Hutchinson Announces Leadership Changes Keith Hughes, previously the bank’s Chief Executive Officer, was named chairman of the board. Hughes has progressed through the banking industry during a 35-year career. He’s been CEO for The First since 2010, previously holding the title of Chief Lending Officer. Hughes also serves on The Kansas Bankers Association board of directors, acting as its finance chair. Troy Hutton has been promoted to President and Chief Executive Officer. Hutton was hired in 2013 as Senior Vice President and Assistant Chief Lending Officer. Since then, he was named the Chief Lending Officer. Darrel Miller was promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Lending Officer of the bank. Miller was hired to The First in 2018 and currently specializes in commercial and agricultural lending. He has 28 years of experience in the banking industry. Briefly ... In Kansas Banking